Somewhat of a drabble, I'm probably gonna turn this into a doujinshi later. Dunno.
This fanfiction has been brought to you by Pizza Induced Madness.
UNREQUITTED
School had been out for a few hours now. Her friends had gotten off the bus much earlier, giving Kaname a puzzled look as she remained on the bus when the announcement called for the Kururugi Shrine. It was fine, though. They were used to the routine.
Kaname did this every other day.
Now, at the other end of the line, somewhere between Harajuku and Shibuya, the announcement called out "Higurashi Shrine. Higurashi Shrine."
Kururugi Kaname got off the bus and gazed up the long flight of stairs. Maybe they'll be here today, she thought, sighing wistfully as she mounted the first step.
She was about halfway up the stairs when she accidentally bumped into someone going down. Kaname sighed inwardly. That meant it was almost sundown, and that the shrine was probably closed.
No chances today, then.
"Oh, I'm sorry! Clumsy me…" the other person laughed, a boy in black gakuran. Kaname got a good look at his face and gasped in shock.
"Houjou-kun!"
"Eh? Oh! Kururugi-san! Long time no see!" Houjou grinned, and rubbed the back of his neck. "I haven't seen you since fifth grade."
Kaname smiled, remembering her childhood friend. It was true that she and Houjou had gone to elementary school with each other.
"Do you come here often?" Her thoughts were interrupted by Houjou's ever-questioning mind.
"O… I come to visit Kagome-chan sometimes…and to see if the attendant is here."
"You like him, don't you? That loud guy with the weird hair and red clothes?"
For being so clueless sometimes, Houjou could also be very perceptive. Kururugi remembered that about him. She nodded, blushing.
"He's not here today, and Higurashi's sick again." Houjou sighed, and began heading down the stairs again, with Kururugi tagging along.
"Houjou-kun? Do you like Kagome-chan?" His silence answered her question.
They finished descending the stairs in silence, and at the bottom, he sat on the last step and looked at the sky.
"You know something funny, Kururugi-san? I've been trying to get Higurashi to date me for the last nine months. She's been sick eight of the nine. Her friends told me, but it wasn't until I saw that guy at the school festival… they're in love, aren't they?"
"Eh? You mean Kagome-chan and Inuyasha?"
"Is that his name? Yeah, them. Every time I see Higurashi anymore, I always feel like he's around, too. I see this flash of red and white all the time at school, whenever she's there. I…"
"I suppose I know what you mean. There was this one time when—when Kagome-chan was in danger," Kururugi was careful to not spill anything about the Sengoku Jidai to Houjou, who probably didn't know, "and Inuyasha did everything he could to protect Kagome-chan. I keep coming here, hoping to catch a glimpse of him, but…"
"He loves her."
"She loves him."
There was a melancholy pause as the two old friends realized the sad truth: that their love was unrequited.
After a while, Houjou spoke again. "Maybe I should try with another girl, one that isn't always sick, or running off with a punk boyfriend, neh, Kururugi?" The setting sun had turned the landscape a burnished red. He looked off towards the sky again. "After all, there is no sense in chasing after the wind."
Kaname looked in the same direction. "Um, Houjou-kun… when I met Kagome-chan and the othe…Inuyasha for the first time, I learned what it was like to say what I need and take charge of my life. And it's silly of me," here Kaname laughed, "sitting here moping about some guy that's taken. I wouldn't say that's taking charge of my life at all."
There was another pause while the two of them watched the sun sink a bit further into the horizon.
Finally, Houjou spoke once more. "Hey, Kururugi?"
"Yeah, Houjou-kun?"
"I know it's late, but… how would you like to go get some ice cream?"